Don't Do That Again
by Selena Snow
Summary: Pidge confronts Lance about what happened that day at the Omega Shield- mainly because he decided it wasn't worth telling anyone about...and maybe because she knows she couldn't live without him. PidgexLance. Major season six spoiler, so don't read if you haven't watched it.
1. Chapter 1

All Lance wanted to do was climb in bed and have a nice long sleep forever and ever. After all, he _had_ died and been resurrected back to life today— he figured he deserved a little R&R time.

The whole experience felt like a dream. There was the bolt of electricity coming toward Allura, a flash of adrenaline running through him, the pain, and then— nothing. A fuzzy darkness that swallowed him whole. The mere thought of it sent a shiver down his spine. Being taken out of it was worse, like he was fighting through a thick sludge, bone tired and so weak that he could barely move. He never wanted to experience that again.

Allura had offered to escort him back to the castle, but Lance insisted upon visiting the shield base with the rest of the crew. After all, it was part of their duty as paladins, and Lance had no intention of leaving until the job was complete.

Which is probably honestly why he's so tired now. The Galras at the base had talked for what felt like decapheebs, and then Lotor wanted a briefing on the whole shebang.

So finally, completely exhausted and ready to give out, Lance made his way to his room.

He stumbled through the vast halls of the castle, his mind wandering through a sea of foggy memories the day had left him with. The journey to his door took a couple dobashes longer than usual, thus he gave a deep sigh when he got there.

"About time," he muttered to himself. He pushed the button for the door to slide open and began to enter.

"Lance?"

The young man turned around drowsily. "Hm?" It took a moment for his sleepy eyes to register what he was seeing, but when they did, he blinked. "Pidge? What's wrong?"

She looked…off. Her eyes were cast down, and they looked glassy. The tip of her nose was red, her clothing was all rumpled, and she was fidgeting with her hands. Wait…had she been crying?

Pidge's arms came to wrap around herself. "Hey, Lance," she greeted softly.

His head tilted. "You didn't answer the question, Pidge."

She gave an awkward little smile, but it quickly faded. "Y-Yeah, I was just, uh…" she swallowed. "I wanted to talk to you…about, um, something."

"Well make it quick," he joked, managing a smirk. "This paladin wants to go to bed."

Pidge nodded, then squirmed. "Um, well…I know what happened today."

Lance's heart skipped a beat. "What do you mean?" he laughed. They could both hear how forced it sounded.

For the first time in their conversation, Pidge's eyes met his. Lance's heart twisted at how sad they looked. "I found out through the mice," she admitted. "I guess Allura told them about it, and…all I want to know is why you didn't tell us."

He raised an eyebrow. "Huh?"

"You didn't tell us," Pidge repeated, now crossing her arms angrily. "You— you _died_ , Lance, and you didn't think that—" her voice cut off, and a tear ran down her face. "You didn't think we needed to _know_?"

Lance felt shocked. He always knew that his fellow paladins cared about him— they were his friends, after all. But…he didn't know that one of them would react like _this_.

He stepped forward, reaching a hand out. "Pidge, I—"

"You can't just do that!" she exclaimed. More tears were falling down, and she hastened to wipe them away. "You mean too much to me to go through something like that and think you should keep it a secret!"

Lance's heart warmed, and without another thought, he opened his arms. Pidge came forward and sank into the embrace. He held her tight, murmuring apologies as he ran a comforting hand up and down her back.

After a few minutes, Pidge sniffed loudly. "Don't you _dare_ do that again," she commanded. Her voice was raw with emotion, but the tone of an unspoken threat was still there.

He chuckled. "Or what?"

She stepped back to gave him a teary smile, and for some reason, Lance's heart rate quickened. "Or I'll come down to hell and drag you back up again."

He guffawed. "Excuse me, why don't you think I'll go to heaven?!"

Pidge let out a loud laugh. "Just a feeling," she teased.

An embarrassed blush crossed his cheeks. "Ha, ha, very funny," he grumbled. "So…can I go to sleep now?"

Pidge opened her mouth to answer, but after a second decided to reach forward and grab him in another embrace. "One more hug," she mumbled into his shirt. He squeezed her reassuringly, and she nuzzled her cheek into his chest. A butterfly fluttered in his stomach.

"F-Feeling better?" he stuttered.

Another moment passed before she sighed, "Yeah, I guess so."

Lance swallowed. "Good…so…you gonna let go?"

All she did was clutch onto his jacket tighter. "A few more minutes, please."

Lance found that he was (strangely enough) more than willing to comply with that request.


	2. Chapter 2

**What? An update that's twice as long as the previous chapter? How strange. I'm not sure if/when I'll continue this story, but when I heard that Jeremy Shada said Lance was a good salsa dancer, I couldn't resist.**

* * *

Lance was across the room, and for the first time in ages, he was smiling his true smile. A laugh burst out of him every couple seconds as he chatted rapidly with his family and friends. He was shimmying in place to the music, and a moment later, his eyes widened when a new song came on. He motioned for his family to join him, and the group all began moving together, with Lance in the middle. His feet stepped into an intricate footwork dance, and everyone cheered.

His eyes were bright, his smile was wide, and his laughter could be heard from every corner of the room.

Pidge hated it.

Well, more like she hated him. Ugh, no, that wasn't correct. She hated how he made her _feel_.

Lance had this weird magic about him. Every time he was around, Pidge felt drawn toward him. His smiles made her happy, and his winks made her blush. When he'd tap her on the shoulder or lean his elbow on her head, a warm fluttery feeling would spread through her.

And those were all good feelings— those she could stand because they made her feel like she was floating.

But the jealousy? It made her sick to her stomach.

Allura, Allura, Allura, that's all he cared about. He would talk about her day and night, constantly casting her wistful glances or sighing as she passed by. And it made Pidge's heart ache.

Maybe that's when she started avoiding him, she mused. Maybe that's when she started hanging out with Hunk more, starting making more sarcastic remarks, starting glaring at the princess when no one could see, then realize she did it and feel guilty because Allura wasn't to blame, and Pidge shouldn't be angry at her for something she couldn't help.

Pidge's honey eyes stared across the room in a daze, tracking Lance's every movement. He was kissing one of his little sisters on the head, now, and it made Pidge's lips turn up.

There was something about being back on Earth that made everything different. They were home, and there was a feeling that everything would be okay. As for Lance, well, all the traits that Pidge admired about him before seemed only amplified. But perhaps that was because of what happened before they came home.

Her cheeks flushed as the memory replayed in her mind for the millionth time. She hadn't even intended on talking to him— not so soon, not while she was still processing what he had done. And yes, maybe some of her anger was brought on by her jealousy (because of course, he had died to save _Allura_ of all people), but then—

Pidge sighed dreamily. Then he had opened his arms, and she was ensconced in a feeling she could only describe as peace. It was warm, and comfortable, and good, oh so very good.

Her eyes blinked open from the daydream to gaze longingly at the boy who unknowingly held her heart. It had been such a wonderful moment…hadn't he felt it, too? Could it be possible that she had imagined it, the magnetic feeling that made her never want to let go?

It was at that moment that Lance was waving at someone. Pidge turned to see who it was— and her heart went numb. Allura had just walked in. And she was dressed to the nines. Of course.

Pidge stared down at her little green dress self consciously. Why was she even here? She should just sneak out before things got any worse. Before she went into another wishful trance or, heaven forbid, saw Lance and Allura share a dance.

Her heart more or less feeling like a shattered mirror, Pidge began to make her way through the crowd toward the door. At one point she got near Lance— she could hear him still chattering away happily, and a bittersweet smile came onto her face. She picked up a few words— _león, universo, planetas_. Then she heard the word _princesa_ , and Pidge started walking even faster.

She just needed to leave. She needed to get out of here, forget whatever half-brained reason she had for coming in the first place, and then let time mend her broken heart. She'd apologize to Lance for leaving his family's party later— maybe make up some excuse about working on something in her lab.

Pidge was so close to the door, and so focused on the rampaging feelings in her heart, that she hadn't even noticed that the beautiful laughter she always cherished had stopped.

But what she did notice was a hand grabbing hers.

The green paladin startled before she whipped around, and upon seeing bright blue eyes, her heart practically jumped out of her chest.

"Sneaking off, hm?" Lance grinned.

"I-I, uh…" Pidge racked her brain. "I-I have things to do, and— you know, robots to tinker with, and—"

He was leading her away from the door. "You can do that any day!" he called over the music. "You only get to learn how to dance once in a lifetime!"

It suddenly occurred to Pidge that Lance had taken her to the middle of the dance floor, and she shook her head rapidly. "L-Lance! Everyone's watching!" she gulped.

Lance gave her an understanding smile. "Relax, I'll guide you through it. I just didn't want you leaving so quickly, you know? You were moping in the corner, and I wanted to make sure you were okay."

A warm feeling spread through her. He had noticed her? And he was worried?

She wanted to formulate some sort of response, but there was no time— he had taken both of her hands in his and was smiling cheerfully.

"Ready?"

All Pidge could do was nod.

A new song came on, and Lance's eyes lit up. "This is my favorite!" he exclaimed, then immediately gave her a little twirl. Pidge stumbled out of it, and he chuckled. "Two left feet?"

"S-Sort of," she stammered.

He nodded. "We'll take the tempo half time, then. In salsa dancing, there's a lot of spinning and stuff—" he let go of one of her hands and turned around, "—see? It's pretty easy!"

"Unless you get dizzy," Pidge pointed out automatically.

Lance laughed. "True! So if you get dizzy," and before she knew what was happening, he'd spun her around twice, "find something to spot! Usually your partner is a good choice."

Dizzy she may be, Pidge tilted her head at his words. "Spot? I don't know what that means."

He was leading her in footwork now, left foot, right foot, in tandem. "When you spot something, you keep your eyes focused on one thing during the spin, then whip your head around to look at it once your body has fully rotated," Lance explained. "So for example, if I'm spotting you—"

Oh. His eyes were gazing directly into hers. Pidge's heart skipped a beat, watching how he turned, snapped his head around, and met her eyes again.

"See how that works?" he asked.

Pidge blinked. "I think so?"

He shot her an encouraging smile. "Now you try it! Focus on me, then whip your head around."

She hesitated, but forced her eyes to fully make contact with his. The warmth in them had her melting. Shaking off the trance she was falling into, Pidge did as she was told— she saw blue eyes, a blur, then blue eyes again.

"You did it!" he cheered.

"Huh, and the room isn't spinning," Pidge noted. She also noticed how close they were. She wasn't dizzy, but her head sure did feel a little lightheaded.

Lance chuckled, taking both her hands in his and moving them in time to the music. "That's the idea," he grinned.

She smiled back, finding that figuring out the rhythm wasn't as hard as she'd thought it be. It was actually quite fun— he'd give her a twirl, then would do one himself. He once tried to go under her arm, and they burst out laughing at that. She was a bit too short for such a move, but seeing him attempt it was worth the struggle.

At some point the song changed, but they didn't leave the dance floor. Lance simply shifted their position, and Pidge blushed when she realized that he'd placed a hand on her waist. One of her hands stayed in his, and after a moment, she moved the other to rest on his shoulder. It was…nice, she decided. Really nice, actually.

There was a moment of peace— just swaying back and forth contentedly, so slowly that she felt herself begin to doze off a bit— before he cleared his throat. "You doing better?"

Pidge gave him a confused look, and he ducked his head.

"I just…you know, about what happened before," he said. She raised an eyebrow, and he swallowed nervously. "The, um…in the hallway. When you cried."

Oh. That. Pidge's ever present blush deepened. "I'm, uh, I'm fine," she decided. "Are you?" Lance nodded, and she breathed a sigh of relief, unwittingly stroking his shoulder with her thumb. "Good."

He tilted his head at her. "Why were you so upset?" he asked softly. "You know any one of us would make that sacrifice for each other in a heart beat, no matter the consequences."

Her own heart beat was starting to gain speed. Pidge felt at a loss for words, and Lance was still staring at her, so after a few moments, she sighed.

"The idea of losing you hurts," she stated simply. Pidge looked up to stare into his eyes, wondering if she could ever make him understand. "I don't know what I'd do without you, Lance."

He blinked— once, twice, then a third time. "O-Oh," he stuttered.

Pidge quirked an eyebrow. "What? What's so surprising about that?"

"N-Nothing!" Lance squeaked. "I just— you, I don't know, you've been with Hunk more lately, and I thought that maybe you thought I was annoying, and didn't want to be around me, and I didn't know what to do, so I left you alone, and—"

His words came to an abrupt stop…most likely because Pidge had summoned all of her courage to close the distance between them to hug him as hard as she could.

"Hey, Lance? Shut up," she advised.

It took a moment before he hugged her back. "Yes, _señorita_."

Her heart squeezed at the raw sound of his voice, and she held onto him tighter. "I'm sorry about all that," she whispered. "You're right— I was avoiding you," she confessed.

She could hear Lance swallow. "Why? Did I do something wrong?"

Pidge let out a strangled laugh. "No, no, you never did." Suddenly, a thought occurred to her, and she leaned back to look up at him with mischievous eyes. "Is it cheesy to say it's not you, it's me?"

Lance smiled, but it was small. "Only if it's the truth."

"It is," she nodded soberly.

Her dance partner frowned. "Are you sure you're okay?" he pressed. "I…I don't know, it seems like you're hiding something from me."

Shocked she may be, Pidge attempted to hide her feelings with a smile. "I'm fine, Lance—" she glanced down at their position, "—great, actually. Thanks for the dance lessons."

"And thank you for coming," he replied, some of his usual lightheartedness returning to his eyes. "I told my family all about you— _la princesa verde_ , the green princess. They couldn't wait to meet you."

Her eyes widened. "What does that mean?"

Lance hummed, then gave her a slow twirl. When she came back around, she saw that his eyes were softer than before.

"Remember on Olkarion, when you made that really cool thing out of the tree?" he asked, and she nodded. "I always thought the interface you wore looked like a crown. I told my family that story, and the name stuck."

Pidge grinned at first, but then a bittersweet feeling entered her body. "Guess we have two princesses, now, huh?" she said. She hoped she didn't sound as jealous as she thought she did.

She watched as his eyes flickered over her shoulder to where Allura was— but instead of his usual reaction, there was a frown on his lips.

"Maybe," he shrugged. Lance's eyes came back to meet hers, and she melted when he gave her a warm smile. "But hey, it's a title well earned, Pidge."

Her lips turned up shyly. "Thanks, Lance."

He winked. "Anytime, _princesa_."

Pidge was on cloud nine.


	3. Chapter 3

**I just keep cranking out these chapters with no idea as to where it's going, but it's fun. And yes, it is a little soon to upload a new one, but I'll be heading out of town for the week! So enjoy this while I'm gone and look forward to more chapters when I get back!**

* * *

 _"Is it cheesy to say it's not you, it's me?"_

Quiznak, what did that even _mean?_

Lance stared up at the ceiling unblinkingly. Those words had been running through his mind for over an hour now, keeping him up until who knows what hour it was.

 _"Lance, I simply can't— it's not you, it's me."_

He squeezed his eyes shut and rolled over. He hated those words. They were on repeat constantly, always playing in his head over and over again like the worst pop song ever.

The scene itself would rewind, too. Lance and Allura on a standard night watch— it was their shift, after all. He hadn't thought much of it. They were just outside the Milky Way, and he was so close to home, he could almost taste it. Yeah, it was just a standard night watch…until the princess had cleared her throat.

"Lance, I believe we need to discuss something of…great importance."

It had gone straight downhill from there. How Allura had ever figured out how he truly felt about her, he'd never know. All he knew was that her pained expression said everything.

 _"Lance, I simply can't— it's not you, it's me."_

Lance almost wanted to put his hands over his ears, but that wouldn't stop it. He knew Allura was hurting after all that had happened. Heck, he was, too.

He knew that he needed to get over her, get over a lot of things. And he was doing pretty well— whenever they spoke now, things weren't as awkward as they had been at first. He'd even been able to wave and smile at Allura when she'd walked in at his family's party. But those words kept coming back to haunt him, because he knew that almost every single time someone said them, it was a lie.

 _"Is it cheesy to say it's not you, it's me?"_

 _"Only if it's the truth."_

A small whimper came up from his throat, and he opened his eyes to stare at the wall across the room. He missed the days when Pidge was always on the other side of his bedroom wall. He hadn't realized how nice it had been— the mechanical humming, the sounds of her pacing in the night— until the ship was gone. Now there was just silence, and the unnerving fact that if she was in danger right now, he couldn't simply leap out his door to protect her.

Lance sighed. He hated this feeling. He hated wondering if everyone secretly disliked him. He hated being useless. He hated screwing things up all the time.

Because he had, hadn't he? Pidge said she'd been avoiding him, so what had he done wrong? He knew it had to be something— Pidge wasn't an illogical person, she always had a reason for everything she did.

 _"The idea of losing you hurts. I don't know what I'd do without you, Lance."_

Lance groaned and covered his face with his hands. Why were things so…complicated right now? He wished things were simple again. Good guys win, bad guys lose. Boy likes girl, girl likes boy back.

Right now everything was messy and wrong and honestly, he just wanted normalcy again. He wanted to be home, to relax, to enjoy time with his family, to not think about the fact that any day now, they'd be going back out into the stars to keep fighting in a war that they may or may not come back from.

And Lance thought that being back home would fix all of those feelings, would give him the peace he'd been craving, but things had only gotten worse and been even more crazy…well, with one exception.

 _"L-Lance! Everyone's watching!"_

 _"Relax, I'll guide you through it."_

A warmth filled his entire being, and a little smile came onto his lips. That dance…

 _"You did it!"_

 _"Huh, and the room isn't spinning."_

Lance couldn't help but laugh a little at the memory. She had been so clumsy with her two left feet. He half wondered if it was because of her dress— he'd noticed her fiddling with it earlier. Maybe it wasn't comfortable? Either way, he couldn't deny that it looked great on her. It had been rather surprising to see her in something other than cargo shorts and her usual sweater, but surprising in a good way.

Catching himself in his own thoughts, he shook his head rapidly. No, no, no. He wasn't going to go down that road. He knew what would happen. He wouldn't treat Pidge like she was some rebound that he'd throw himself at just because he had his heart broken, and he was feeling needy.

But then another part of the memory hit him.

 _"I…I don't know, it seems like you're hiding something from me."_

 _"I'm fine, Lance— great, actually. Thanks for the dance lessons."_

A frown came on his face. He knew she'd lied, mainly because she had a habit of looking down when she lied. But why? Why would she do that? What was so secret that she couldn't tell him, after all they'd been through?

For the first time all night, his eyes wandered over to his phone. It was just a foot away, sitting ever so innocently on his nightstand.

…dare he?

He began to reach for it, but pulled back. No, he wasn't going to do this to her. She deserved better— someone who wasn't heartbroken and insecure like he was. No, Pidge needed someone self assured and confident, someone who didn't make friends want to avoid him and cause relationships to get awkward when he had unrequited feelings.

…but what if _he_ needed _her?_

 **L: Can I call you?**

The wait for her reply was dreadful. His heart was racing, and his stomach felt a little sick. This was a bad idea, he just knew it. What if she wasn't even up at this hour? It was far past midnight, there was no way—

His phone buzzed. Lance answered it a bit too quickly.

"Hey!" he said, immediately sitting up in his bed.

"Hi," Pidge replied, and he could hear a yawn. "What's wrong?"

Lance grinned. She never beat around the bush. "I can't sleep," he shrugged. "What about you? I'm surprised you're still up."

"Oh please, you know I never go to bed until three am," she snorted. "I bet you could hear me next door all the time."

For some weird reason, his heart skipped a beat. Lance chuckled, "Yeah, I remember…it's kinda…weird that you're not there anymore."

He swore he heard her take in a sharp breath.

"…yeah," she agreed. "I, um…I don't know," she laughed awkwardly, and his smile widened. "It's been lonely without everyone, you know? Like I'm happy to be back with my family, but…I miss yo— you guys."

Lance tried to tell himself she'd just had a slip of the tongue. "Yeah, I miss everyone, too. I guess…I don't know, I feel kinda selfish right now."

"Why?" Pidge asked, her voice deadpan. "There's literally no reason for you to."

"Can you—" Lance hesitated. "Can you keep a secret?"

He imagined her zipping her lips. "I'm like a steal trap," she joked. "What is it?"

Lance laughed, but he knew it sounded weak. "I don't know…I mean, I'm keeping you awake, probably. And I just saw the whole team a few days ago, and I feel pathetic for feeling lonely without everyone."

"You're not the only one," Pidge reminded him.

He sighed. "Yeah, I know, but it's just— everything's been weird lately. And if I'm honest, I feel useless. Everyone has been contributing to building the new ship, and I'm doing nothing. And it's always like that— you and Hunk are the geniuses, Keith and Shiro are the leaders, and Allura always saves the day. Even Coran does more than me. I'm just this weird seventh wheel who can't do anything right. And no one wants to be around me— heck, I don't blame Allura for saying she'd never be interested in me, because who would want someone like—"

Lance froze. He hadn't meant to let that slip out. They hadn't told anyone what happened between them. It was best that way, or at least that's what she'd said.

It took him a moment to realize that the other side of the line was dead quiet.

"Pidge?" he swallowed. "You there?"

"Y-Yeah, sorry, just…thinking," she replied slowly. "Why…why do you feel like that? You…you just talk so bad about yourself. It's awful, Lance."

Lance felt guilt beginning to creep in. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have bothered you with it, I'll just hang up now—"

"Lance, _shut up_ ," she sighed. "Quiznak, don't you— don't you know how much you're valued? Don't you realize how much we all care about you? Because I know it, and so does everyone else. So why do you feel like this?"

His heavy heart squeezed. "I-I don't know, it's just always been that way," he confessed. "Everyone has a thing, and I don't."

Then she said the words he'd never forget.

"Lance, you're _you_. And that's more than enough."

His eyes filled with tears, but she kept going.

"You forget that you were the first one to get a lion— Blue could've chosen anyone, but she chose you. And then you switched to another lion! Do you realize that you're one of two people in the entire universe who have been a paladin to two lions? You're also an incredible shot, and you're always there for the rest of us when we need it most. So don't you dare say that you're not important or that you're useless or some stupid seventh wheel crap because you're not, okay?"

Lance nodded shakily, even though he knew she couldn't see it. "O-Okay."

Pidge took in a calming breath. "I just…promise me that you'll never think those things ever again. _Please_ , Lance."

He opened his mouth to agree, but paused. "Only if you promise me something in return," he requested.

"What's the promise?" she asked warily.

Lance wondered if this was a bad idea. "You have to tell me why you were avoiding me."

Silence.

"…when do I have to tell you?" Nervousness was clear in her voice.

"Whenever you're ready," he decided, then frowned. "But I want to know what I did wrong so I can fix it."

Pidge heaved a heavy sigh. "Lance, you did _nothing_ wrong, I promise you."

"If you're sure," he whispered.

There was a moment of quiet. He wondered if he'd pushed too far, if all of this had been too much. Maybe he shouldn't have called at all. Maybe he should drop this little promise deal they had.

But then there was a light breath on the other side of the line. "I'll tell you soon."

Lance managed a smile. "When's soon?"

"When I want it to be," she said, snickering a bit at the end.

He groaned dramatically and fell back onto his bed. "Ugh, keep me in suspense, will you?"

She was still laughing, but she managed to quell it long enough to say, "Hey Lance, can you keep a secret?"

"I'm like a steal trap," he parroted her from earlier.

There was another giggle, then a sigh. "I miss you, Lance."

If his heart had been skipping beats earlier, now it had come to a full stop. "I…I miss you too, Pidge," he admitted softly. His eyes flickered to his alarm clock, and he grinned. "Usually around now I'd be hearing you throw your shoes off."

"You heard that?" she gasped.

"Every night," he chuckled. "You were a pretty loud neighbor."

"Pffft, I'm so sorry," she wheezed. "I never knew I was that bad. Matt always said I was loud, but I thought he was joking."

Lance burst out laughing. "Rest assured, he wasn't."

Their laughter died down slowly, leaving them in a contented silence. He could almost imagine her right there with him, just sitting there, smiling.

"Guess I'll see you in a few days, then?" Pidge asked.

"Yeah, guess so," Lance sighed.

He knew she was nodding. "Call me again if you need me, okay? You know I'm always here for you."

Lance smiled. "I know. And same goes to you, too."

"Thanks…goodnight, Lance."

"Goodnight, Pidge. Sleep well."

"You, too."


	4. Chapter 4

**Guess who's back and ready to water some Plance?**

* * *

She had to tell him. And she had to tell him _soon._

Part of her was tempted to just walk up to him, grab him, and kiss him. But there were several reasons she couldn't do that.

A. She wasn't confident enough for such a brazen move.

B. This wasn't a 90's rom-com.

Pidge paced back and forth in her new temporary quarters at the Galaxy Garrison. They'd decided that this would be the best meeting spot on Earth for the time being, and she knew that Lance would be arriving on base any minute now.

What was she going to do? She couldn't back out— if there was one thing she was proud of, it was that Katie Holt never backed out of a promise. She kept them, like she always would. But how was she going to fulfill this one without it winding up a complete and utter mess?

Her mind flashed back to their conversation a few nights ago. Since then, he'd opened up a bit more— apparently he and Allura had a talk about a month ago. She wondered why she hadn't noticed how different they'd acted around each other after that (oh yeah, that's because she'd been avoiding him).

Pidge scoffed. Some paladin of intellect and daring she was.

This whole event had been taking up her mind for days. She couldn't tinker, she couldn't code, she couldn't do anything other than think about what the quiznak she was going to tell Lance.

She couldn't lie— he could tell when she lied, and either way, he deserved better than that. But what else could she do? Tell him the truth and make this already complicated situation even worse?

The day felt like it had come so quickly, and now, she was panicking. Her heart was racing, she couldn't stop pacing back and forth in her room, and she felt tingly all over with nerves. And to think, the girl who always had a plan (and at least two backups just in case) was the one without a vague notion as to what on Earth she was going to do.

"Ugh," she groaned, flopping down onto her bed. Why did she have to fall for him? Why did he have to fall for someone else? Why did any of this have to happen in the first place?

Her phone on the nightstand buzzed, and her heart practically jumped out of her chest.

 **S: Lance just got here. Meeting in 1 hour in room 205.**

Pidge's anxiety spiked. Great, now Lance could be on his way down to her room any minute, and she still had no idea what she was going to do.

Suddenly a thought hit her, and she sprung up from her bed to dash into the bathroom. Did she look okay? Was her hair a mess? Did she need to brush her teeth? A quick look in the mirror answered that last question with a firm "yes." As fast as she could, Pidge scrubbed down her teeth and then took in a deep breath.

"Okay, calm down," she muttered to herself. "It's just Lance. Tell him the truth. He's your friend, he'll understand. Things might be a little awkward, but that's okay. It'll go away with time. You'll get over him. Things will go back to normal."

Her little pep talk weirdly helped, and for a moment, she actually felt her heart rate begin to decrease.

But then a knock at the door sent it skyrocketing again.

"Pidge? You in there? It's me."

She whipped around and stumbled. "Y-Yeah, give me a tick!" Pidge turned back and stared herself down in the mirror.

 _Deep breaths. Deep breaths. Don't panic. Good thoughts. Get it over with._

Seconds later, she was opening her door with a nervous smile.

"Hi," she greeted.

"Hello," Lance replied, grinning. "Am I allowed in?"

"Mmm, I don't know," she teased. "What reason do you have for gracing my presence?"

He snickered. "Well, I do seem to recall a promise you made, and you did say last night that you'd tell me today."

Pidge inwardly cursed her past self. What was it about being on the phone at three am that made her agree to stupid things?

She attempted to shrug casually. "It appears I did." With that, she opened the door wider and waved for him to enter.

Lance walked in slowly, taking in the bland Garrison room with curious eyes. "Guess you just got in too, huh?" he asked.

"Yeah." Wow, solid answer, Pidge, this was already going so well. She twiddled her fingers as he looked around, then finally, his eyes turned to her.

"So…" he trailed off. "I've been thinking about things."

Pidge swallowed. "Oh?"

Lance nodded. "Yeah…I decided that you don't have to tell me if you don't want to," he said. "It's kinda mean of me to make you tell a secret if you're not comfortable with it. And I don't want to do that to you, because…you know, I care about you, and I wouldn't want to be a jerk, so I—"

Quiznak, she wanted him to stop talking. Not because she hated what he was saying— if anything it made her tense shoulders finally relax— but because his lips were moving and his hands were fidgeting and she was walking toward him without even realizing it.

"—and I promise not to think bad things about myself again, and I wanted to say thank you for saying all of that too, e-even though I still don't know if I deserve it all, but—"

This was torture. He needed to stop looking so cute and bashful. He needed to stop messing with his hair nervously. He needed to stop doing all the things she liked before she did something she'd regret.

"—so anyways, I thought I'd go unpack and leave you alone, now—"

His blue eyes met hers again, and she knew it was too late.

Before she knew what she was doing, Pidge had grabbed his hoodie and pulled him down to crash her lips against his.

Lance froze, and in that moment, she realized what she'd done. Horror crashed down over her, and she nearly pulled away—

…but then Lance was kissing her back.

Hope bloomed in her heart. She pressed her lips into his just a bit more, almost like asking if this was really okay, and he responded in kind, tilting his head and deepening the kiss. His hands came up to cup her face, and she felt herself go weak at the knees.

Quiznak, this was actually happening. She was actually kissing Lance!

And it felt like a dream. His lips moving slowly against hers, gently, and every now and then deeper, as though he was adding an exclamation point at the end of the most beautiful sentence she'd ever read.

It was long and sweet and terrifying because she wanted to live in the moment, but she was so scared of what would happen when it was over. What if this was a mistake? What if he was kissing her on accident? What if he was confused?

But they were both running out of breath, and she knew that her daydream had to come to an end. They parted, panting lightly, and she let her hands fall from where she'd been clutching onto him.

"I'm sorry," she breathed, eyes shut tight. "I'm so sorry, Lance, I shouldn't have done that."

She could hear him swallowing hard. "P-Pidge, it's…it's okay."

At the sound of his voice, she managed to open her eyes. His eyes were wide, and his breathing was labored, and…was his hair messed up? Had she done that? She couldn't recall. His lips were what drew her attention the most— they were dusty pink and slightly swollen, and she had to force herself not to kiss those lips again.

Then the full weight of what she'd done hit her like a freight train, and she shrank back, ashamed. "I'm _so_ sorry," Pidge whispered again.

Lance blinked dazedly. "Why?"

Her eyes darted to the ground. "Because I shouldn't have kissed you, because everything is already a mess, and I'm only making it worse—"

"Pidge, if I didn't want to kiss you back, then I wouldn't have."

Her head snapped up. His eyes held truth, though it was still mixed with shock and a tint of bashfulness.

Lance licked his dry lips, and she tried so hard not to watch it. "I, ah…can we sit down and talk about it?" he asked.

All she could do was nod. The only place to really sit down was the bed, so that's where they went. Lance sat down first, and Pidge went to place herself at a distance— but then he patted right beside him. Slowly, she did as he requested, finding that it was strangely warm in his presence.

His eyes met hers, and his cheeks flushed. "Um, do you wanna go first?" he asked.

Pidge hesitated, but nodded. "So…I like you," she admitted, feeling silly because if that wasn't obvious by now, then she didn't know what to do. "And, uh…that's why I was avoiding you."

One of his fingers in his lap twitched. "How— how long?" he questioned.

Her cheeks were burning. "Maybe a year."

There was silence. She ventured a peek at his face, but it still looked just as confused as before.

"So…why did you avoid me if you…liked me?" Lance pressed curiously.

Pidge wanted to hide her face behind her hands. "The Allura stuff," she mumbled. "I knew how much you liked her, and it made me jealous."

Again, silence. Lance's expression was contemplative, now. He opened his mouth to say something, but stopped. He did this once more, then finally, scooted himself around so that he could face her properly.

"So, I'll admit, this isn't what I expected today," he laughed awkwardly. Pidge couldn't help but grin sadly in agreement. "And, well, you know everything that happened with her a month ago," he swallowed. "But…"

"You're not interested," she filled in for him.

To her complete surprise, Lance's eyes filled with indignation. "What, no, I just— crap, I'm so bad at this," he groaned, then sighed. "I still need time to get over it, and I don't want to use you," he stated as quickly as he could.

Pidge blinked. "I…I don't think you're, um, you'd— _use_ me."

Lance shook his head. "But I don't want to get into something with you when I'm not over her. That's not fair to you, Pidge."

Why did she feel like crying all of the sudden? Was that it? Was this how things were going to be? He was basically trying to find the nicest way possible to tell her he wasn't interested, and they were just going to have to live in this awkward state of having shared a kiss (and a really good one, at that) and that was it. Game over.

But wait, why was there movement in her peripheral vision?

She looked up, but then immediately looked back down again when she felt warmth envelop her hands. Light brown hands held pale ones, and she stared down at them with wide eyes.

"Are you okay with waiting for me?" Lance asked softly, and one of his thumbs was rubbing circles on her hand. "I still need time, but…I do want to try something with you, Pidge."

His words made her eyes flicker up to meet his. "What do you mean by something?"

A blush came over his face. "A relationship," he clarified. "W-With you, of course."

Though it had began to numb, her heart started pounding again. She dared to take one of her hands out of his grasp and place it on his cheek. "Really?"

He blinked, and his eyes glanced down at her lips— when had they started leaning in toward each other?— before he replied, "Yes."

It seemed no more needed to be said. They gave into the magnetic sensation pulling them together, and their lips met. If their first kiss couldn't be classified as passionate, this was even less so. It was shy, tentative, and ever so slow. Almost like a silent promise— she would wait, and he would be hers as soon as he could get his heart back together.

There was no rush in it, but by the sounds of soft moans, it was evident they both wished there was. They wanted to get on with it. They wanted to figure out what all this was as soon as possible. They wanted to live in this kind of peace and exhilaration all the time…but certain things had to be taken care of first.

Pidge didn't know what to think when he finally left— they did have a meeting to get to in twenty minutes, after all. All she knew was that she'd never been so happy for her often problematic impulsive behavior in her life.


	5. Chapter 5

**Season 7 drama is making me crazy, so have some Plance to brighten your day.**

* * *

If there was one thing Lance hated, it was rules. Rules were meant to be broken, or at least bent. Rules were boring, made by the overly cautious, forced upon everyone, and assumed to be absolute law.

But in this case, he knew that the rules would either make or break this tenuous whatever-it-was he had with Pidge.

 **Ground Rules:**

 **1\. Absolutely no kissing.**

 **2\. Short hugs are acceptable.**

 **3\. Hand holding is not.**

 **4\. Talking for hours randomly is a necessity.**

 **5\. Don't mention subjects that are sensitive.**

To be clear, he still hated them. He hated the fact that every time he saw her now, he wanted to kiss her. He hated the fact that she'd sigh happily when they'd hug, and that he couldn't keep her there forever. He hated the fact that he couldn't hold her hand walking down the hallway (though he would "accidentally" brush hers from time to time). He hated that they could talk forever and ever about almost anything, but would never go near the subject of what they were.

Lance knew he wanted her. He also knew that he had to be patient. And then he also knew that this was all his fault to begin with.

He'd asked for time to heal, and she'd given it to him. With that came space…maybe a bit too much space, if he was honest.

Lance understood why they had these unspoken rules: to protect them. Everything was chaotic right now— the ship building, the war planning, the military training. The team itself was fragile as it was, and they couldn't afford to let anything else break.

But quiznak, all of these rules just made Lance want to forget it all, run to her room, and kiss her until the pain in his heart stopped. No, no, he couldn't do that. He wouldn't use her. He needed time to heal. He needed space to figure things out…or at least that's what he told himself.

Said space was currently in the training room. He had felt angry earlier— at himself, at Allura, at Lotor, at the Galra, at the universe, who knew. He just felt angry, and he knew he couldn't stay like that.

So he pounded away at all the drones the Garrison owned. His bayard was constantly shifting back and forth— blaster to sniper, sniper to blaster. He'd mastered the change months ago, but he hadn't had much practice with it lately.

Another drone rose up in the distance. Lance willed the bayard into the sniper. Steady, aim, fire. The drone fell to the floor.

He paused and took in the carnage around him. Silence reigned, and Lance frowned. Did someone turn the system off?

But then his ears picked up the sound of a drone falling from the ceiling right behind him, and without another thought, he whipped around and—

The bayard shifted into an Altean broadsword.

He stumbled forward, shook his head, charged the drone, then took it down.

The second the drone's eyes faded into a lifeless grey, Lance dropped the bayard. The sword stared back at him tauntingly, and he wanted to scream.

He'd been avoiding the Altean broadsword ever since that night over a month ago. All it did was remind him of Allura, and he hated it. Every memory of her was tainted with regret and bitterness, with confusion and pain.

Another moment passed before the bayard melted back to normal, and Lance muttered, "End training sequence."

He listened to the sound of the program shutting down, then leaned over to pick his bayard up. Lance stared at it frustratedly. Of all things, why did he have to activate the sword now? Why had he done that? Was it a sign?

Suddenly the image of Pidge's breathless post-kiss expression entered his mind, and he groaned. He hated this. He wanted to get over Allura. He wanted to stop feeling angry. He wanted to be with Pidge. He wanted his heart to stop being such a mess.

Lance could've stood there all day berating himself, but at that moment, the door to the training room creaked open. The Cuban boy tensed, then saw the calm face of his leader and slumped, relieved.

"Hey, Shiro," Lance greeted tiredly.

Shiro's face was grim. In his one hand was a bottle of water, which he threw at Lance. "You've been going at it pretty hard," the black paladin noted neutrally.

Lance caught the water bottle and gave him a grateful nod. He didn't acknowledge what Shiro said— he'd honestly forgotten that there was an observation window at the far end of the training room.

Comfortable silence filled the room for a moment. Lance gulped down the water, and Shiro leaned against the wall. He had that look about him, the one where Lance knew he had something he wanted to say. So Lance waited patiently, knowing that the words would come eventually.

But it wasn't what he expected.

"Pidge mentioned you were blowing off steam," Shiro mentioned offhandedly.

Lance's heart skipped a beat. "Oh, did she?"

"Yeah," Shiro nodded. "Is there anything you need to talk about?"

The blue paladin felt like laughing. That question was ridiculous, and they both knew it. Everyone on the team had something they needed to talk about— quiznak, they probably all needed to go to group therapy or something.

Sighing, Lance tucked his bayard away and nodded. Shiro gave him a look that indicated for him to go ahead and speak.

Lance crossed his arms and shifted uncomfortably. "Do you ever want to not think of something?"

His leader's eyes flickered down at his stump of an arm. "Every day," he shrugged. When Shiro's eyes returned to Lance, they had a knowing look. "But then trying to not think about it makes you think about it more, doesn't it?"

Lance nodded defeatedly. "I just…there are some things I'm trying to work through, but it feels like I can't," he admitted. "And today I was so angry, and I thought coming down here would help get stuff off my mind, but it only made things worse."

"Sometimes time is the only thing that can help," Shiro said. "After I escaped the Galra, I used to get nightmares about being back in captivity…then slowly, they stopped."

Lance's lips turned down. Great, so that meant he might need even more time than he thought. He didn't want that, he didn't want to keep making Pidge wait. Heck, what if he never got over Allura? What if he was only making things worse and giving Pidge false hope?

A hand clapping down on his shoulder broke him out of his unruly thoughts. Lance looked up, and Shiro smiled gently.

"Only you can decide how you feel about things. These troubles can't force you to feel a certain way— you have control over how you react," Shiro advised. "Whatever it is you're facing, Lance, I know you can get through it."

Lance managed a tiny smile. "Thanks, Shiro."

The black paladin patted him on the shoulder. "Anytime."

* * *

 _Only I can control how I react._

Lance ran the thought through his head again. He had been back in his room for sometime now because he had desperately needed a shower, not to mention time alone to think.

 _These troubles can't force me to feel a certain way._

It was a confusing idea, but somehow it made sense. These weird circumstances he found himself in didn't have to dictate how he felt— he had completely control over how he felt about things.

Huh, maybe that's how Shiro always seemed so level-headed all these years.

Lance stared up at the ceiling for a second longer, then allowed himself to close his eyes. The image from earlier appeared in his mind: the one where Pidge was gazing at him with wide eyes, panting through swollen lips that seemed to scream at him to kiss them again.

Quiznak, he missed her. Lance knew Pidge was right down the hall, but with the way things were, it was just so…unfulfilling. He'd gotten a glimpse, a taste of what she was really like, and it left him with a craving he had never experienced before.

He replayed the entire memory from just a week ago over again. That kiss…he wanted to relive it every day for the rest of his life. He had never been more surprised (and more exhilarated) in his entire life. It was breathtaking— _she_ was breathtaking.

Why hadn't he seen it before? How had he been so ridiculously blind? He half wondered if everyone else was blind, too, then worried that their eyes would suddenly open and they'd all want her for themselves.

Pidge was…man, she was _everything_. Brains, beauty, personality, humor, passion. She had it all. Best of all, she knew exactly what to say to make him understand things he could've never comprehended before. Usually it involved the words "shut up," but coming from her, he didn't mind it, especially since something good usually followed right after.

He could see it now— bright, inquisitive honey eyes. Bashful, sometimes, but always curious. A quirky smile and slightly messy hair. The occasional freckle or two that dotted her nose, followed by a massive pair of glasses.

Lance sighed and opened his eyes to stare up at the ceiling. He knew he was torturing himself. But he couldn't help it. He needed her like he needed air…and for some reason, he'd decided to put himself in a vacuum until his heart stopped hurting.

He wished he hadn't decided that, but there was no going back. And he knew that it would be worth it in the end— he would be able to start a relationship with her with a clean conscience. But this wait wasn't going to be easy. If Shiro was right about time being the only thing that could help, then who knew how long it would be until Lance could finally have her.

Maybe…maybe it was time to bend one of the rules just a little bit.

Before he knew what he'd done, he was at her door knocking. She opened, just as he'd hoped, and ushered him in with concerned lines on her face.

The second the door shut, Pidge turned. "What's wrong?"

Lance's hands fidgeted. _Just say it. It isn't that hard. Get the words out. Hope for the best._

"Can we cuddle?" he blurted.

A broken look entered Pidge's eyes. "Lance, you…you know we can't—"

He came forward and took her hands in his before she could step away. "Please, Pidge," he begged. "Let me be yours for ten minutes. I…" he swallowed, his eyes flickering toward the ground. "I need it. I need _you_."

There was a sigh, and he glanced up. There was a war in her eyes, caution and fear written all over her face. But under his pleading gaze, she seemed to cave, and eventually, she nodded.

A massive smile came over Lance's face, and overcome with joy, he swept her off her feet. She gave a squeak, and he laughed. He sat down on the edge of the bed, swung his legs around, and settled her down to face him, her face just inches from his on the pillow.

Lance wrapped his arms around her and sighed with relief. It was perfect, cozy, exactly what he needed after this emotionally draining day. He didn't remember closing his eyes, but he opened them when he realized that Pidge had gone still.

She was staring at him with a hesitant expression. A wave of insecurity crashed over him. Had he pushed too far? Was this too much? What if she was uncomfortable?

He opened his mouth to say he could leave…but she surprised him.

"Can I…play with your hair?" she asked softly.

Lance had never felt more caught off guard in his life— and he'd never nodded so eagerly, either.

He watched in a daze as a delicate hand came forward and threaded itself into his hair. Lance leaned into the touch, humming happily. She was gentle and tentative as she twirled individual locks around her fingers, taking her time to investigate each individual strand.

His eyes fell closed, and he allowed himself to drift off into a state of peace. It was quiet, all except for the sound of her steady breathing. Some time had passed (Lance had no idea how long— he was far too comfortable to keep track) before he heard a soft sigh, Pidge's breath tickling his nose. His blue eyes fluttered open and gazed into her honey ones, immediately finding that he liked how they looked when she stared at him with half-lidded bliss.

"So how was your day?" she murmured.

"Meh," he shifted, "I was kinda angry today."

Pidge nodded, and he found comfort in the fact that the action was entirely nonjudgemental. "Do you wanna talk about it?"

Lance shrugged, tightening his grip on her subconsciously. "Nah, not really. I blew off some steam in the training room, and Shiro gave me some good advice."

"That's good…" she hummed. Her hand had stopped in its ministrations, but it returned to combing through his hair. "You know if you're upset, I'm always here too, right?"

He sighed. "I know." Lance ventured to stroke her cheek. "I just don't want you to see me when I'm angry."

"You've seen me angry plenty of times," Pidge pointed out. Lance met her eyes, an acknowledgment of the fact that she was right. "We've all been through a lot lately," she said. Her hand brushed a stray piece of hair out of his eyes. "It's okay to be angry, sad, frustrated, whatever. We'll— _I'll_ understand."

He found himself nodding, then he hesitated a bit, trying to find the right words. "Honestly…I'm not even sure what I was angry about," he confessed. "Maybe a lot of things."

There was a moment of silence. Then, out of nowhere—

"I've been sad a lot lately," Pidge admitted.

Lance's head snapped up in surprise. "What? Why didn't you tell me?"

She smiled, a bittersweet expression. "I didn't want you to see me like that," she shrugged, mimicking what he'd said earlier.

It clicked. They were both hiding parts of themselves from each other thinking they were sparing them…when really, they both wanted to stop hiding things and help each other.

Lance nodded slowly. "Okay…from now on, let's be more open with each other, okay?" he asked. "Because I want to be there for you when you're sad."

Pidge's hand left his head and tangled itself in his hand that laid between them. "And I want to be there for you when you're angry," she whispered.

Lance frowned and looked down at their joined hands. The touch gave him comfort, and his thumb began to make slow circles on her skin. "It's not a pretty sight," he muttered.

Pidge let out a giggle, and the sound made his heart swell. "And neither is me crying," she grinned, "I'm an ugly crier."

A smile cracked on his face. "You? Ugly?" he questioned. Lance leaned forward to nuzzle her hair with his nose. "Never."

Pidge smiled softly. "Thanks…" She was weighing whether or not she wanted to say something— he could see it in her eyes. Quiznak, he loved her eyes. "You're not too bad looking yourself, by the way."

He fought the urge to burst out laughing, instead giving her his most dashing smile. "I know!" Lance winked.

Pidge snickered, and Lance allowed himself to let out a chuckle. Their amusement died down slowly, and they were left gazing into each other's eyes. Lance wondered later if they had a mind connection, because at the exact same time, they both moved to wrap themselves tighter around each other, sighing contentedly immediately after.

This is what he wanted— no, what he _needed_. Lance knew that his requested ten minutes had passed long ago, but he ignored it, just like he ignored the fact that this was only temporary. Tomorrow, they'd act like this had never happened. They'd pass in the halls with strained smiles. They'd stare at each other wistfully across the mess hall. They'd brush hands and not say a word.

But for now, in this moment, everything was perfect.

Lance didn't remember falling asleep. But when he woke up and found her alarm clock with bleary eyes, he knew he had to go. It was going to be daybreak soon, and he had to leave.

As gently as he could, he unwound himself from her. Lance gazed at Pidge longingly, allowing himself to stroke her cheek. He wanted to stay…but he knew his time was up. He'd already pushed too far.

His eyes flickered down to her lips, then forced himself to look away. He had to wait. He had to be patient.

Lance left her side quietly. He started for the door, but paused. A moment later, he went over to her desk and grabbed a pen and a piece of paper.

It took him a couple minutes to figure out what to say, but finally, he stared down at the words with a feeling of success.

 _I can't wait to be yours. Miss you already._

 _P.S. Your eyes are beautiful._

Lance set the note on her nightstand, cast Pidge one more wishful glance, then left.


	6. Chapter 6

"Pidge, you're assigned to this mission."

There was no missing the way Lance's head snapped up at Shiro's words.

Pidge ignored him and nodded. "Yes, sir."

Logically, it shouldn't be too difficult. Go to Kerberos, pick up Galran life scans, return home, use the scans to make a new Galra tracker. Her old one and all its data had been lost when they destroyed the Castle, so she'd known that this was coming. There wasn't any way around it anymore— they _had_ to know how much time they had before the Galra came, otherwise they might not be ready in time.

But those blue eyes wouldn't stop staring at her from across the table, and it was so hard to not acknowledge them. She could practically feel the fear emanating from his body, which had gone uncommonly rigid. Pidge dared to take a peek. His eyes were so _broken_. She had to look away.

"Any questions?" Shiro was asking.

Pidge shook her head. "Nope."

He nodded. "Good. Go ahead and get ready— we'll launch as soon as you meet us on the tarmac."

With that, the meeting disbanded. Pidge headed toward the door, and if her innate Lance senses were right, then she needed to pick up the pace before he did something stupid in front of everyone.

Thankfully, he seemed to be trying to find right the words as he followed after her, so the crisis was averted. She didn't dare look back at him. She didn't know if she could bear it.

But then they turned the final corner toward her quarters, and the hallway was empty, and she prepared herself for whatever was about to happen.

"You're not actually going out there all on your own, are you?"

Pidge gritted her teeth and kept walking. "Obviously, yes, I am," she replied acidly. They were entering her room now. The door shut, and she finally turned to face him.

Lance was fidgeting worriedly. "Pidge, you can't tell me you actually think this is a good idea—"

She rolled her eyes. "It doesn't matter if it's a good idea or not, this intel is life or death."

"And your safety is life or death, too!" he protested. "We know that the Galra have been there before, and you going out there in just one lion is completely ridiculous!"

Pidge huffed and turned on her heel. She began to walk toward her closet to grab her armor, but a hand stopped her.

"Pidge, just let me come with you," Lance begged. "You'll be safer that way—"

A hard glare entered her eyes. "Lance, stop it!" she insisted. "You're not— you can't—"

Lance stepped forward and tried to take her other hand, but Pidge pulled away. He frowned down at her. "Pidge, you know I can't just sit back and watch you go by yourself. It's dangerous!"

Pidge scowled. "You're not my boyfriend, Lance," she reminded him sourly. Quiznak, if she could take those words back, she would.

Lance looked like he'd been shot in the heart. He stammered uselessly, gaping at her as though he couldn't believe she'd just said that. To be fair, she couldn't believe it either.

After a moment, he shook his head and groaned, running a hand through his hair out of frustration. "I know, I know it every day," he sighed loudly. "This isn't about that—"

Her hands went to her hips, and she stared up at him defiantly. "Yes it is, and now is not the time for this conversation, Lance." Why was she doing this? Why was she saying these things? Gosh, she hated herself.

Silence held them captive. Pidge watched as Lance slowly wilted, his eyes going to the floor. "So you won't let me come with you…not at all." She hated the way his voice sounded so defeated.

Pidge swallowed hard. Her eyes fell to look anywhere but him. "Lance, I can't talk about this right now. I have to focus on the mission— you know that. Our duty as paladins comes first." Oh how she wished that wasn't true.

She knew he wanted to say something. To ask one more time, to plead again. His body was practically screaming it.

But instead, Lance nodded, resigned. "Okay."

Pidge wanted to cry. She hated this— all of it. She hated how lately every time she saw him, it felt like a magnet was pulling her toward him. She hated how her heart ached just looking at him, she hated how he'd give her soft glances across the room, she hated how she wanted him so bad and felt like she couldn't do anything about it.

And now he was walking away.

No, no! Why'd she say all those stupid things? Why couldn't she be honest with herself, why couldn't she admit that of course she wanted him with her! That's all she ever thought about these days. She wanted to run to him. Wanted him to hold her tight. Wanted him to come along, to keep her smiling the whole way there with silly jokes and pointless conversations. But now wasn't the time. She had to be patient.

But her heart tore a little bit more with each step he took toward the door, and she knew she couldn't let things end on this note.

"Lance, wait!"

He turned, and a second later she was running to him and leaning up on her tiptoes to kiss his cheek. Her face was bright red, but she managed to meet his wide eyes with her fierce ones. "I'll come see you as soon as I get back— promise."

Lance's lip trembled. He gathered her in his arms, and she clutched him tight when she heard shuddering breaths. "Thank you," he choked. "I-I… _please_ be safe, Pidge." There was a light pressure on the top of her head, and it took her a moment to realize it had been a kiss.

Pidge released him just enough so she could stare into his eyes. "I will, Lance."

Blue eyes were becoming glassy, and he shut them so she couldn't see. "Okay," he whispered with a nod. "Okay, okay, okay," he repeated, almost like he was trying to reassure himself. His eyes opened, and he quickly let her go. "I'll um, I'll leave you to get changed and stuff."

An adoring smile came onto her lips. Quiznak, if only he knew how cute he was.

Before she could stop herself, she had reached up and kissed his nose. "You're cute when you're worried," she teased.

Lance blinked. "I-I, ah—" he stammered, a blush rising. "O-Okay?"

Pidge burst out laughing and flung her arms around him one final time. "See you when I get back," she giggled against his chest.

He groaned. "You torture me," he mumbled, nuzzling his nose into her hair.

She looked up at him with a twinkle in her eyes. "You torture me, too," she grinned.

He smiled sadly. "Sorry."

Sighing, Pidge snuggled back into his warmth for what she told herself would be the _actual_ last time. "I'm sorry, too."

They waited a few more moments before they released each other. Lance gave her one more wistful gaze before he left. Pidge's heart had never felt more heavy as she suited up.

Before she knew it, it was just her and Green and the stars. Seven and a half billion kilometers there…seven and a half billion kilometers back. Pidge glanced down at her radar to see how far she'd already traveled. Only thirteen-point-two billion kilometers until she saw Lance again.

 _What is wrong, my paladin? You are usually much more excited for our journeys._

Pidge shook her head. "Sorry, Green, I just…something happened before we left."

There was an understanding purr. _Red's paladin?_

"Yeah," Pidge sighed. "He was worried."

 _He should have more faith that Green will keep you safe!_

Pidge laughed. "No, girl, it's not that." Lance's anxious expression popped into her head. "It's…" Pidge smiled dreamily. "It's just how he is. He cares a lot. He can't help but worry."

A low rumble. _And does he care for you as you do for him?_

"…I hope," Pidge whispered.

A warm sensation spread through her mind, almost as though Green was wrapping herself around Pidge.

 _You are a wonderful paladin deserving of a wonderful mate. I am sure Red's paladin cares for you more than you know._

Pidge blushed. "M-Mate? Green, is there something you know that I don't?"

 _Only that you've had such thoughts, my paladin._

The flustered paladin cleared her throat. "Anyways, let's focus, Green."

Amused rumbles shook the cabin, and Pidge groaned. Only her lion would tease her about her crush.

Pidge took in a deep breath. Focus. Mission. Her eyes flickered down to the control panel. Twelve-point-seven billion kilometers to go.

* * *

The moment Pidge landed back on Earth, she ran. Screw the scans she'd picked up— that could be delivered to Shiro first thing in the morning. She'd just spent way too much time out in space all alone, and she knew what— _who_ she needed.

It was late at night, but she knew Lance wouldn't care. When she got to his door, she wasn't surprised to find that it was unlocked. Pidge flung it open, tossed her helmet aside, and threw herself into Lance's awaiting arms.

"Red told me when Green landed," he breathed. "I'm so glad you're okay."

Pidge's grip on his pajama shirt tightened. "I told you I would be."

They stood in silence for a long time. At some point Lance let her go and nudged her toward his bed, and there, they fell into a comfortable embrace. He wrapped one arm around her waist, and she snuggled into his chest as much as she dared. Their faces were just inches apart, and she found herself wanting to memorize every square inch of him. Quiznak, why did it feel like it'd been forever since she'd seen him? Lance let her study him, all the while fiddling with random pieces of her hair with a sober expression.

Pidge frowned. "You're still upset, aren't you?"

Lance's only reply was a small nod.

She sighed and nuzzled her cheek into his chest. "You know I had to," she murmured.

"I know," he whispered. Pidge felt his grip on her tighten. "I just wish it wasn't like this."

Shifting her position slightly, she moved so her eyes met his. "I'm sorry." What she was sorry for, she didn't know. Her harsh words to him before she left, the situation they were in, the fact that she couldn't stop herself from selfishly enjoying his presence more than she should.

But Lance was giving her a little smile. "It's okay…thank you for coming here."

"You're welcome," Pidge hummed. Sh examined his features again— his lips were turned up just ever so slightly now. Before she realized what she was doing, Pidge cupped his cheek with one hand, then slowly ran her thumb over his bottom lip.

"How much longer?" she wondered.

Pidge didn't know she'd spoken out loud until Lance's eyes softened. One of his hands reached up to smooth her hair out of her eyes. "Soon," he promised.

Pidge closed her eyes. Quiznak, she wanted this to last forever. But she knew it couldn't— she had to leave before she did something she'd regret.

She swallowed hard. "I…I should go."

Her eyes opened just in time to see Lance's flicker down to her lips. "Yeah…"

Walking out of that room was one of the hardest things she'd ever had to do.


	7. Chapter 7

**Second to last chapter! I'm going to finish this up literally the day before season 7 comes out, because inevitably that will change this entire story in one way or another, and I'd rather that not happen. Enjoy!**

* * *

Lance was shimmying his way down the hall, humming a random tune as he went. It had happened again: the thing where it's time for dinner, and Pidge said she'd be there, but she hadn't shown up. He knew she hadn't meant to skip out— she'd probably been so focused on her work that it had slipped her mind.

A dopey grin came onto his face, and he chuckled. Pidge was _always_ working so hard on the new Galra finder, and he _always_ had to remind her to take care of herself. She never did, though, which meant that he _always_ had to step in.

Lance moved into a brief step sequence, then twirled, careful to keep the plate he'd piled with food steady as he did so. He loved their little routine. Every day it was the same way.

Wake up. Go to breakfast early and grab her favorite muffins before they got eaten up. Wait for her to arrive, knowing that his heart would jump the second she walked through the door. Tease her about how sleepy she was in the mornings. Hand her the muffin, go make coffee for her (one cream, two and a half sugars exactly).

After breakfast, they'd go to their daily debriefing. Usually at that point, Pidge was awake enough to talk. Sit through the meeting, occasionally tapping her foot with his and grinning when she'd send him a weak glare. Split up for whatever they were assigned to— drills, training, strategy meetings, overseeing the ship building, etc.

Count down the minutes until lunch time. Go find her inevitably caught up in her work, briefly argue about how she wouldn't lose track of what she was working on, go down to lunch and listen to her chatter on about her latest project. Eat lunch with Hunk and Keith— usually everyone else was busy because they were higher up, but sometimes Shiro and Matt would join them.

Before she'd leave to return to her tasks, he'd always make some joke about how she should skip out and join him, instead. She'd roll her eyes and turn before he could see her smile…or at least that's what he let her think. He _always_ saw her smile. It's what made him do it every single day.

The afternoons would pass painfully slow, but it only made him more excited to see her. And of course, she'd never show up for dinner (it used to hurt, until he realized that it was just how she was). And just like right now, he'd have to take it upon himself to get her dinner and take it down to her hangar.

This was usually one of the best parts of their routine— it was just them. Sure, sometimes Hunk or Coran would wander in, but they never stayed for more than a couple minutes. It left Lance time to admire Pidge in silence, watching her work and occasionally asking questions if he couldn't figure something out (which, admittedly, was most of the time). It was peaceful, quiet, and the perfect way to end every single day.

And then, his favorite part would come.

Every night, after some convincing, he'd walk her back to her room. And every night, they'd stop and say goodnight before they parted ways. And every night, her eyes would flicker to his lips.

Lance sighed happily. If only Pidge knew what she did to him. He wanted to tell her, he really did. But lately he felt all silly and nervous around her. Everything she did made him go crazy, but he couldn't figure out how on Earth to tell her.

His mind went back to two weeks ago when she ran a thumb over his lip. He stifled a giggle. Quiznak, he'd wanted her to just kiss him. He knew she'd wanted to— she had that look in her eyes, the look he knew he gave her all the time. It was the one filled with desire and want and need and unbearable longing that could only be satisfied by each other.

A warm fluttery feeling entered his body, and his heart squeezed. He couldn't wait to see her tonight. Maybe she'd have one of those cute grease stains on her nose like she did every now and then. He always liked wiping those off, mainly because she'd always snicker and push him away after he did it.

Lance turned the corner in a daze, his mind on Pidge and Pidge alone. Which is probably why he was startled so bad when he heard someone yelp his name.

He halted immediately, making sure he kept the plate in his hands. His eyes took in the scene, and he laughed. "Oh, sorry, Allura! My head's in the clouds."

The princess gaped at him. "L-Lance, it's…quite alright," she assured him. Her voice was slow for some reason.

Lance's head tilted. "Are you okay, Allura?"

"Yes!" she answered immediately. "I am, ah, fine. And yourself?"

"Fine?" he replied, his voice pitching up out of confusion. She was acting weird— why was that? Internally, he shrugged. Sometimes Alteans were just difficult to figure out. He knew he'd had more than one miscommunication with Coran before, and even more so with Romelle when she first joined the team.

But Allura was giving him a unsure look. "That's good," she nodded. "Are you…acclimating back to home well?"

Lance brightened. "Oh, definitely! It's been so nice to be back."

There was an awkward pause. Lance couldn't figure it out— why was she acting so strange?

Then, after peering at him for a few more seconds, Allura's shoulders dropped. She smiled approvingly. "You seem happier, now, Lance."

He raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"Well, after our, um—" she cleared her throat, "— _conversation_ , you were rather put out. But now you have returned to your usual self."

"Huh," Lance blinked. "I hadn't even realized it."

The princess clasped her hands together. "Yes, well…I'm glad you're better, Lance."

He smiled. "Thanks, Allura. I'd stay and chat, but—" he held up the plate in his hands, "Duty calls."

"Of course," she nodded understandingly, though her eyes did show some puzzlement. She must not have known about Pidge's habit of accidentally skipping dinner. "See you around?"

"Yup, see ya!"

With that, Lance simply kept walking. As he continued his journey, his brain began to process what just happened. That was…fine. Just fine. Normal. Easy. He hadn't felt a bit nervous around her. Didn't feel a need to prove himself. No thought of flirting came to mind.

Wait…did that mean—

The realization hit him, and Lance stopped, his eyes going wide.

He was over her.

Lance wanted to burst out laughing. Wow, he really was stupid sometimes. How long had he been completely okay around her? Allura didn't phase him anymore— it was like it had just happened slowly over time, and he didn't even notice.

The young man blinked, a wide grin beginning to grow on his face. He began walking again, faster, and faster, until he was practically running. He had to tell Pidge! Quiznak, he had to tell her right now! They could finally be together!

Lance rounded the final corner to her hangar. He caught a glimpse of her through the window. His heart nearly jumped out of his chest.

"Okay, Lance," he said to himself, then took in a deep breath. "Just walk in and tell her. It'll be easy. Yeah, totally easy. It's Pidge, she'll be happy to hear it."

His pep talk must have taken too long— either that, or Pidge had eyes in the back of her head. Either way, she'd turned in her chair, glanced at him, rolled her eyes, and spun back around to her work.

A nervous flutter ran through him, and with that, Lance walked in. "Geez, what did I do to deserve _that_ look?" he questioned when the door shut behind him.

He noticed one of her hands move to rub her temples. "Lance, you know I can never focus with you around," she grumbled.

Lance came around her station, immediately noticing that regardless of her annoyed tone, her eyes were lit up brightly. Maybe it was him, maybe it was the food, maybe it was both. He didn't care— he liked seeing her that way. Pidge made a scene of sighing loudly before she motioned for him to sit across from her.

Smiling proudly, Lance did as he was told. He settled down in his usual place, then pushed the plate toward her expectantly. Pidge grabbed the fork from his hand and dove into the food, all the while looking over the numbers that flooded her screen.

"Honestly, I don't know how you survived all these years without me," Lance commented.

Pidge shot him a look he couldn't interpret. "Me neither."

Quiznak, he both loved and hated how their words sometimes had double meanings. It made him feel all jittery, like they were constantly beating around the bush in an endless game of tag.

"You're staring."

Lance tilted his head. "And?" he asked, settling his chin into his hands. "I always watch you work."

Pidge's eyes met his briefly. "You're staring more than usual."

Lance shrugged. "Maybe. 's hard not to."

He watched as her face reddened. She didn't reply, and he smiled softly. He loved it when she got flustered. He couldn't wait until he could do that every single day…and for her to do it to him in return. During their few stolen moments a couple weeks ago, he'd seen her do it before. It always stung a bit that she wouldn't return his teasing now, but he knew why. She was protecting herself, like she always did. She'd let her guard down in those times, and now it was back up again.

Lance brought himself back to the present. Pidge was refocused on her work. He scanned it over, finding that as usual, he had no idea what any of it meant.

"What are the blue thingies?"

"Subroutines. I'm trying to reroute them."

Lance hummed. "Why?"

"Because if I don't, the Galra finder won't be dialed in enough to locate anything," Pidge answered. "Right now, it's trying to search all of space, when we only need it to search the quadrants that we know the Galra occupy."

He thought it over. "So…then it'll work faster because it won't have as much information to process, right?"

Pidge nodded. "That's the idea."

"Then why do you need to reroute the subroutines?" he questioned. "If you know you don't need them, then just get rid of them altogether. That'll speed it up even more, won't it?"

She gave him an amused look. "Well I can't do that because—" Pidge froze. "Wait…hold on, you might be onto something. If I delete them, that'll provide space for the Garrison modulation sequencing!" she gasped. "Lance, you're a genius!"

Lance leaned back in his chair and smiled. "What can I say? You're a good teacher."

Pidge shook her head. "I never thought you were actually listening. I thought you just hated the silence."

He chuckled. "That, and I like hearing it from you," he winked.

"You're impossible," she sighed, but there was a tiny smile on her lips.

"Impossibly awesome," Lance corrected cheekily.

Pidge laughed, and his heart skipped a beat. With that, she returned to her work. Lance let her continue in silence, occasionally checking his watch. It was getting late, and he knew they had a busy day tomorrow. There was no way he'd let her pull an all-nighter like she did last week. She'd missed training because of that, and he'd nearly worried himself sick over it.

Lance gave her a few more minutes, then cleared his throat.

Pidge startled out of her zoned in state. "What?"

He held up his watch for her to see. "It's time for you to get to bed."

She rolled her eyes. "I'll be fine, I just need a couple more hours, and—"

"And miss training again?" Lance questioned. "Not gonna happen."

Pidge frowned up at him. "But I won't remember where I left off!"

Lance chuckled. She always said that. He leaned over, pushed the save button on her computer, then shut it down. "You always do, Pidge. Come on, it's sleepy time."

She stuck her tongue out, but followed him out of the hangar nonetheless. Her steps were slower than usual, and Lance made sure to adjust his long strides to accommodate for her. Pidge yawned, then wiped her eyes tiredly.

"You okay?" Lance asked.

She sighed. "Just tired. I might have snuck out of my room last night after you walked me back."

He frowned. "Pidge, you shouldn't do that. You know you need all the rest you can get."

"I know, but my brain wouldn't shut off," Pidge grumbled. She stumbled a bit, and Lance placed a steadying hand on her back. She shot him a grateful look, then frowned. "You need to worry less. I'm getting plenty of sleep, I promise."

They'd reached her room. The halls were empty, and for that, Lance was thankful. He reached out and brushed a piece of hair out of her eyes.

"You know I can't not worry about you," he murmured.

A sleepy smile came onto her face. "I know."

And there it was— her eyes flickered to his lips.

Lance's brain was screaming at him to tell her. He wanted to, he really did. But then she yawned again, and he knew it'd have to wait. It needed to be special; if he told her now, who knew if she'd remember the next day. She'd probably think it had been a dream.

Still, he couldn't help but break their routine a little bit. Usually he would resist, but tonight Lance pulled her into his arms and squeezed her as tight as he could.

"Goodnight, Pidge," he whispered against her hair.

One of her hands stroked down his back. "Goodnight, Lance."

He walked away planning a thousand ways of how he could tell her.


	8. Chapter 8

When Pidge opened her eyes that morning, she wished she hadn't. She wished she could just go back to sleep and not have to get up and face the day, because honestly, she didn't want to. She knew it would be just like every other day— seeing Lance, fighting down all the magnetic tugs and fluttery sensations, wondering when the day would finally come when they could be together, protecting her heart from getting hurt, then lying awake at night terrified that it would all be for nothing.

It was the inevitability of the situation they were in, she supposed, but it still sucked. It sucked especially lately because Lance had been hanging around her more, and there would be these lovely moments where everything would feel so right…but then she'd snap back to reality and remember how empty it all was.

Pidge sighed loudly and forced herself to get out of bed. She checked her phone on her nightstand, immediately seeing a text from Lance saying that he'd be unusually busy today. A sharp sting ran through her heart. Quiznak, she'd never felt so lovesick in her entire life, and it was really starting to drive her up a wall.

Which is why the situation she is currently in is torture.

The day after she'd gotten up had been normal enough. Sure, she didn't see Lance, and that made her be in an uncommonly frustrated mood, but she still did her usual things: work on robots, help with the new castle ship, answer everyone's billion questions on the improved Galra finder (see, if Lance had been here, then he probably could have helped her with that— at this point, he knew the inner workings of the machine almost as well as she did). Typical day.

But then she'd gone to bed, and her mind wouldn't shut up about equations and modulating and coding. Lance was the first thing she'd thought of, so now they were here, on the floor of his room watching some random midnight soap opera in their pajamas.

When she'd arrived, he was sitting down on the floor. She'd told him it was ridiculous, but he'd just laughed and asked her to join him. Then, somehow, he'd convinced her that being close might help her fall asleep. So here she was, sitting in his lap of all things! But no, that wasn't the problem.

The problem was that Lance was driving her crazy.

His thumb swept what had to be the fifteenth circle on her shoulder in the past few minutes. It was slow, and smooth, and left her trying to focus harder on the stupid soap opera just to distract herself.

See the thing was, Pidge always wore a tank top to sleep, and she hadn't thought anything of it until this moment. But for some reason, as soon as she'd sat down in his lap, his right hand had gravitated toward the bare skin.

And it felt _wonderful_.

One tantalizing touch, and then another. It was innocent enough, but for some reason, it was driving her absolutely insane. A warm, tingly sensation had spread through her, and it only grew each time Lance's thumb moved to pass over her skin.

He was doing it again, now, and she bit her lip. _Control yourself, Pidge._

But quiznak, it was getting difficult. She'd tried everything— gritting her teeth, fisting her hands, looking around the room. None of it was enough to get her mind off his touch.

He let out a soft hum behind her, and she shivered when his breath hit her neck. Why had she thought this was a good idea? She was only torturing herself by being around the person she knew she couldn't have.

The thought of leaving crossed her mind, but it instantly vanished when Lance's knuckles stroked down her forearm.

Pidge fought a whimper in the back of her throat. What was he _doing_ to her? She forced her eyes shut.

 _Calm down. It's just hormones. Desire is a perfectly natural emotional reaction to someone you like. It's a human response to attraction. You don't have to obey it. You can handle it._

But then Lance dragged his fingertips down to her elbow and back up again.

Her heart was hammering in her chest, and she honestly didn't think she could take one more second of it. She wondered if he felt how she did— buzzing with barely controlled want.

Pidge attempted to take in a deep breath. _Calm down, calm down, calm down, calm down,_ she mentally chanted, but it was useless. His fingers were still ghosting over her skin, unknowingly teasing her in the worst way possible.

She could feel herself caving, and finally, she twisted so she could see his face. "L-Lance?"

Half lidded blue eyes met hers. "Hm?" His fingers drifted up and down again, and that's when she snapped.

Pidge crashed her lips into his, and he responded immediately. Their lips met in a frenzy of desire and desperation. It had been far too long since they'd kissed, and even now as they moved against each other frantically, it felt like it wasn't enough.

Lance's fingers lowered from her elbow to grip her waist, and she sighed. Then his thumb began to make circles on her hips, and all rational thought left her mind.

Pidge turned in his lap to face him properly. Their noses knocked together, and she felt Lance shaking with laughter before he pulled her in to him. Her chest against his, there was no more space between them. She grasped at his shirt, wishing there was some way he could be even closer.

One of her tank top's straps was beginning to slip off from her shift, but she didn't care. His lips were on hers, and that's all that mattered. Lance's right hand began to slide up her back, but stopped short when it met bare skin on her shoulder.

He broke the kiss. "Whoops, sorry—" he breathed, quickly pulling the fallen strap back up.

Pidge just laughed and dove back in, giggling when she felt him smiling against her lips. He cupped her face with his hand, pressing into her lips fervently. She tilted her head to deepen it, and he moaned.

Desire flared up within her again. One hand reached for his hair, and then other wandered down to his neck. She nestled her touch there, her fingers toying with the hemline of his shirt, every now and then brushing against the nape of his neck. Lance made a disappointed noise, but then he had an idea. The hand he left on her hip began to copy what she was doing to him— fiddling with her shirt, then just barely passing his fingers over her skin. Two could play this game.

His touch on her skin sent her head spinning. It was all so much and it was all so good. Her lungs were beginning to tighten for lack of oxygen, but she didn't care. All she wanted was Lance, and everything else could just disappear.

Speaking of Lance, it seemed he was running out of air, too. His chest was raising and falling rapidly against hers. His lips left hers briefly to take in a sharp breath, then they were back again.

Suddenly, their long, passionate kisses turned into a flurry. Their lips would meet, part, then meet again. Pidge's heart felt like it was about to explode, and she clutched onto him like he was her lifeline.

Lance tightened his hold on her. "Let," kiss, "me," kiss, "be," kiss, "yours," he mumbled, then pressed a final searing kiss to her lips.

They broke apart gasping for air. Pidge blinked, her brain barely processing what he said. "What?" she panted.

He leaned down and kissed her again, gentle and sweet. She instantly shut her eyes and melted into him, but he quickly let her go to speak. "Let me be yours," he repeated.

Pidge froze, her eyes flying open and going wide.

Desperate blue eyes gazed into hers. "Please, Pidge, this is driving me crazy," he pleaded. "I can't stand not being with you anymore."

Visible fear overcame her face, and his expression softened. Her hands had fallen from him out of shock, and he took them in his. "I'm over her…I think I have been for longer than I realized," he admitted.

"I-I—" she stuttered hesitantly. "I don't k-know, I…"

Lance squeezed her hands. "Please, Pidge, I'm begging you. I'm ready. I don't think I can take another day not being with you."

There was truth in his voice, the kind that made her want to believe him, even though she was still absolutely terrified. Pidge peered up at Lance. His eyes showed no sign of deception. Her hand came up to stroke his cheek. He leaned into the touch, eyes closing in bliss, and her heart filled with hope.

"And you're sure your heart is healed?" she whispered.

He nodded, his eyes opening slowly. "It's healed…" Lance brought her hand up to his lips and pressed a kiss to her knuckles, "and it's yours."

It hit her all at once. This was it. The wait was over. They could finally be together.

Pidge felt her eyes begin to fill with tears, and a thousand thoughts were running through her head, but all she could do was lean in to kiss him again, almost like she had to check that this was really real. Lance hummed against her mouth before he lead her in a steady dance, their lips moving slower than they ever had before.

One of his hands had moved to her back while the other stayed on her cheek. Both of hers wound around his neck, and she held on as tight as she could. Lance's hand stroked down her back comfortingly. A soundless sob wracked her body. He just kissed her deeper.

Gosh, she still couldn't believe it. She couldn't believe she was here. She couldn't believe he was hers. She couldn't believe that all these days of waiting and that awful twinge in her heart had melted away with just a few words. Another wave of emotion came over her, and she allowed her tears to spill over.

It took a couple seconds for Lance to notice, but when he did, he immediately pulled back and began to wipe the tears away.

"Shh, it's okay, it's okay," he soothed. His brows furrowed in worry. "I'm sorry, did I do something wrong?"

Pidge shook her head. "N-No, I'm just," she sniffed then sighed, gazing adoringly into his eyes. "I'm so happy that we can finally be together."

Lance's eyes softened. "I'm happy, too," he murmured. He came forward and kissed her forehead sweetly. "But I hate seeing you cry."

She let out a strained giggle. "What can I say? It sucked waiting."

"Tell me about it," he grumbled. "Every day was torture."

The pair shared an embarrassed laugh. Lance hesitantly met her eyes with his, and as though all of this was for the first time, or someone had pushed a reset button, they blushed. She smiled up at him, and he smiled back.

"I, um…so, we're dating now, right?" Pidge asked.

Lance's blushed deepened, even though his smile became broader. "I mean, I'll beg again, if you want me to."

Pidge burst out laughing and covered her face with her hands. "N-No, you don't h-have to," she giggled.

"That's a relief," he chuckled. His hand began to stroke up and down her spine again. "It was terrifying enough doing it once."

She relaxed into his touch, then returned the affections by shyly lifting her hand to stroke his cheek. The new couple found themselves in a trance. They gazed at each other in wonder, both consumed with the thought that _this was it_. This was all they ever wanted. And now it was theirs and theirs alone.

Within a few minutes, however, Lance seemed to snap out of it. He blinked at her several times, a new blush coming over his face, and then he blinked again.

"I-I, uh," he stammered. "Well, I j-just realized, we…we never, um…"

Pidge raised her eyebrows at him.

Lance cleared his throat. "Sorry, let me start over. So…how does a first date sound?"

She glanced down at their position, which now that their passionate moment had faded, seemed more than just a little intimate. Pidge looked back up at him and gave a wry grin. "A little late, but it'll do."

A flustered expression came over Lance's face. "W-Well, where do you wanna go?"

Pidge wanted to burst out laughing, but instead, she leaned forward and pressed a long, sweet kiss against his lips. Her new boyfriend let out a soft moan, and she smiled before they parted.

"Anywhere is good with me, as long as you're there," she sighed happily.

Suddenly, Lance snickered. "That's kinda the point of a date."

Pidge rolled her eyes. "Shut up, I'm trying to be like one of those cheesy romance movies."

Lance snorted. "Nah, we're more like a slow burn tv show or something."

"Well," she said, shifting to wrap her arms around his waist and snuggle into his chest. "You're not wrong."

* * *

"I hereby call this meeting into order."

The occupants of the room straightened in their chairs. Hunk's steady gaze passed over them from the front of the long conference table. Pleased that he had everyone's attention, he cleared his throat.

"As of last night, a new development has occurred," Hunk announced.

The reaction in the room was immediate. Wide eyes and gasps were spread all around.

"Lance and Pidge…" Hunk trailed off, building the suspense. "…are finally dating."

"OH THANK GOODNESS," Matt shouted, slumping down in his chair. "Do you know how long I've had to put up with her talking about him while we modulate? And she didn't even realize she was doing it half the time!"

"Yeah, maybe now Lance will finally start paying attention during training," Keith scoffed, crossing his arms. "All he ever did was stare at her, and his swordsmanship has been terrible lately."

Allura and Romelle gave identical sighs. "I'm just happy he found someone," Allura remarked.

"And someone that will love him as much as he needs!" Romelle added on.

"They really do deserve each other," Shiro agreed, and everyone nodded.

"Yes, yes, we already knew those things," Hunk waved a hand dismissively. "But that is not why I called this meeting into order. It's time…to pay up."

Groans echoed throughout the room.

"Hunk, is this truly ethical?" Coran questioned. "The Paladins are meant to be a shining light to the entire universe, and betting isn't exactly painting the picture of a role model."

Hunk slammed a fist down on the table. "We've had this going for months, now! We can't back out just because I was right and everyone else was wrong!"

"Barely," Keith grumbled. "I had my bets on just a couple days ago after Allura told us about her encounter with Lance. He took too long to tell Pidge."

"At least you weren't way off like me," Krolia snorted. "I thought it would be at least another decapheeb before they stopped running in circles around each other."

"Hunk, maybe it's best if we call off the bet," Shiro suggested in a pacifying manner. "What we should really be focused on is the fact that Lance and Pidge are finally together, and we should show our support to them."

Hunk narrowed his eyes. "You're just saying that because you owe me the most!"

"True," Matt nodded. Shiro gave a impish grin.

With no more oppositions to be heard, Keith stood up and held out his share. "Let's just get it over with, guys."

There were grumblings, but everyone began to comply. Hunk held his hand out expectantly, and they all came forward to give it over—

"What's going on here?"

"AH!" everyone screamed. They spun around to see Lance and Pidge hand in hand, both with dubious expressions on their faces.

"Yeah, what is all this?" Lance questioned. "Are we gathering money for a charity or something?"

Hunk smiled sheepishly. "Haha, wow, what weird timing for you two to get here, I'll take that—" he rambled, stashing the money and slowly inching toward the exit. "We were actually just talking about you, and you should totallyaskShirowhathesaidBYE!"

And with that, Hunk was gone in a flash, leaving everyone blinking after him.

"Does…anyone know what just happened?" Lance asked.

Pidge stepped forward and narrowed her eyes. "Yeah, what's all this about?"

Their friends gave awkward laughs before they, too, dashed off.

Lance and Pidge were left standing in an empty room, both of their brows furrowed.

"Why are we all so weird," Pidge shook her head.

"I dunno," Lance shrugged. He leaned down to kiss the top of his girlfriend's head. "Wanna go down to your hangar and finish your new project?"

Pidge smiled and squeezed his hand. "I dare say that's the best idea you've had all day, dear."

Lance winked. "Only for you, honey."

* * *

 **It's the end! Hope you guys enjoyed it, and if you did, please leave a review to let me know! Also, if you have any ideas for any Plance stories or one shots, let me know! I'm always here to listen to new ideas, and I'm sure we'll have plenty after Season 7 tomorrow!**


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